Korean Expressing Regret: -(으)ㄹ걸, -아/어 버리다, -나 싶다
Korean voices regret with -(으)ㄹ걸 그랬다 (그때 살걸 그랬어요 — I should have bought it then), marks finality with -아/어 버리다 (다 먹어 버렸어요 — I went and ate it all), and second-guesses with -나 싶다 (괜히 샀나 싶어요 — I wonder if I shouldn't have bought it).
Published:
Written by Alvin Lim Certified Korean Language Teacher (Level 2)
Looking back with regret in Korean uses three tools. -(으)ㄹ걸 그랬다 is the classic “should have” (그때 살걸 그랬어요 — I should have bought it then). -아/어 버리다 marks an action carried all the way through, for better or worse (다 먹어 버렸어요 — I went and ate it all). And -나 싶다 is the soft second-guess (괜히 샀나 싶어요 — I wonder if I shouldn’t have bought it). One of them, -(으)ㄹ걸, even doubles as a “probably” guess — so we’ll untangle both of its jobs.
Chapter 4 closes its incidents-and-accidents arc on the feeling that follows: regret. After the thing has gone wrong, this is how Korean voices “if only I had…” You’ve handled the events; now you handle the second-guessing. Start with the words that color a regretful look back.
Ten words for regret and second-guessing
These carry the “if only…” mood.
Should have — -(으)ㄹ걸 그랬다
To say you wish you had done something — the classic regret — attach -(으)ㄹ걸 그랬다 to a verb stem. In casual speech the 그랬다 is often dropped: just 살걸.
그때 그 가방을 살걸 그랬어요 = I should have bought that bag back then 어제 일찍 잘걸 그랬어요 = I should have gone to bed early yesterday 진작 물어볼걸 그랬어요 = I should have asked sooner 차라리 안 갈걸 그랬어 = I’d honestly have been better off not going
It looks back at a choice and wishes you’d chosen otherwise. For a regret about not doing something, negate it: 안 살걸 그랬어요 = I shouldn’t have bought it. Pair it with 괜히 (“needlessly”) or 진작 (“sooner”) to sharpen the feeling.
Wait, doesn’t -(으)ㄹ걸 also mean ‘probably’?
The very same ending has a second, unrelated job: a softened guess. Said with light, rising intonation (and kept with 요), -(으)ㄹ걸요 means “probably, I’d guess.”
아마 벌써 도착했을걸요 = they’ve probably already arrived 그 가게 지금 문 닫았을걸요 = that shop is probably closed now 이게 더 비쌀걸요 = this one’s probably more expensive 지금 가도 자리 없을걸요 = even if you go now there’s probably no seat
Two clues tell the jobs apart: the regret use often drops 그랬다 and points at your own past choice (살걸 그랬어요), while the guess use keeps 요, often adds 아마, and points at someone/something else (도착했을걸요). Same shape, tone decides.
Did it completely — -아/어 버리다
To mark an action carried all the way through — done, gone, no take-backs — attach -아/어 버리다. The feeling (relief or regret) comes from context.
배가 고파서 케이크를 다 먹어 버렸어요 = I was hungry and ate the whole cake (regret) 비밀을 그만 말해 버렸어요 = I went and blurted out the secret (oops) 숙제를 다 끝내 버렸어요 = I knocked out all the homework (relief!) 비밀번호를 잊어버렸어요 = I completely forgot the password (잊어버리다 = one word)
The core is finality — “it’s fully done, no going back.” Whether that’s a sigh or a weight off depends on the outcome: 끝내 버리다 feels great, 말해 버리다 stings. Note 잊어버리다 (“forget”) is so common it’s written as one word.
I wonder if — -나 싶다
To half-wonder — a soft, unsettled doubt rather than a firm conclusion — use -나 싶다 (with adjectives, often -(으)ㄴ가 싶다).
괜히 샀나 싶어요 = I kind of wonder if I shouldn’t have bought it 내가 너무 심하게 말했나 싶어 = I wonder if I was too harsh 이게 맞는 건가 싶어요 = I’m half-wondering if this is even right 비가 오나 싶었는데 안 왔어요 = I thought it might rain, but it didn’t
Unlike the settled regret of -(으)ㄹ걸 그랬다 (안 살걸 그랬어 = I definitely shouldn’t have), -나 싶다 leaves the doubt hanging — you’re not sure yet. It also handles general musing, not only regret: 그게 답이 아닌가 싶어요 = I suspect that’s not the answer. It’s the gentlest of the three.
A regretful shopping confession
You splurged and now you’re not so sure — all three tools, live:
Watch them work: 사 버렸어 marks the done deal, 샀나 싶기도 해 floats the soft doubt, 기다릴걸 그랬나 봐 is the “should have,” and 다 나갔을걸 is the OTHER -(으)ㄹ걸 — a guess (“probably sold out”). Both jobs of -(으)ㄹ걸 in one chat, exactly as you’ll hear them.
FAQ
-(으)ㄹ걸 means both ‘should have’ and ‘probably’ — how do I tell them apart? Context and tone. As regret it’s -(으)ㄹ걸 (그랬다), often sighed, looking back at your own past choice: 일찍 잘걸 (그랬어요) = I should have slept early; 더 살걸 그랬어요 = I should have bought more. As a softened guess it’s -(으)ㄹ걸요 with rising, lighter intonation, about something you can’t be sure of, frequently with 아마: 아마 도착했을걸요 = they’ve probably arrived; 그 가게 지금 문 닫았을걸요 = that shop’s probably closed now. Two clues: the regret use often drops 그랬다 and points at yourself; the guess use keeps 요, adds 아마, and points at someone/something else. Same ending, two jobs.
Does -아/어 버리다 mean regret, or relief? Either — it marks finality (‘it’s completely done now’), and the emotion comes from context. Regret: 비밀을 말해 버렸어요 = I went and blurted out the secret (oops); 다 잊어버렸어요 = I completely forgot. Relief / good riddance: 숙제를 다 끝내 버렸어요 = I knocked out all the homework (done at last!); 미련 없이 헤어져 버렸어요 = I just broke it off cleanly. The core meaning is ‘carried the action all the way through, no going back.’ Whether that feels like a sigh or a weight off depends on whether the outcome was wanted. Note 잊어버리다 (‘forget’) is so common it’s basically one word.
How is -나 싶다 different from -(으)ㄹ걸 그랬다? -(으)ㄹ걸 그랬다 is a clear regret — you’ve concluded you made the wrong call: 괜히 샀어, 안 살걸 그랬어 = I shouldn’t have bought it. -나 싶다 is softer and still uncertain — you’re half-wondering, not sure yet: 괜히 샀나 싶어 = I kind of wonder if buying it was a mistake. It hedges the doubt rather than declaring the regret. -나 싶다 also works for general musing, not just regret: 비가 오나 싶었는데 안 왔어요 = I half-thought it might rain, but it didn’t. So 살걸 그랬다 = settled regret, 샀나 싶다 = lingering ‘hmm, maybe I shouldn’t have.’
Next: graphs & statistics — 에 따르면, -(으)ㄴ/는 데 비해. Previous: incident & disaster news — (으)로 인해, 마저. Full path: curriculum hub.